There were 11 Air Force personnel, two Army personnel, one Navy and one Coast Guard personnel on board the aircraft when it went missing. Ekanath Shetty (48), a native of Belthangady taluk in Dakshina Kannada district, is said to be one among the occupants of ill-fated IAF AN-32 aircraft that went missing over Bay of Bengal on Friday. Mr. Shetty, son of Krishna Shetty of Guruvayanakere in the district, has been serving the Army for over two decades. The couple have two children – Akshay and Ashrita, said Shahiraj Shetty, his co-brother and a resident of Belthangady. He had been home recently and left Guruvayanakere to resume duty at Madras Regiment, Chennai, on July 9, family sources here said.

Source: The Hindu July 23, 2016 07:30 UTC